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Palestinians Divided as Israeli Strike Looms

Council on Foreign Relations

June 27, 2006
Prepared by: Esther Pan

Intensive talks between Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas and PA President Mahmoud Abbas of the once-dominant Fatah faction brought the two sides close to bridging their differences over the recognition of Israel. But initial reports of a breakthrough quickly dissipated when Hamas, whose charter pledges Israel's destruction, denied any implicit recognition was on the table. The effort to forge a common position on the so-called "prisoners letter," which among other things recognizes Israel's right to exist in its pre-1967 borders, comes as Israeli forces massed on the Gaza border threatening an invasion.

Media outlets differed on the progress made, with al-Jazeera suggesting a deal was imminent, while other outlets portrayed both sides as having second thoughts (BBC). The New York Times quoted a senior Abbas advisor, Saeb Erekat, saying "The agreement is not finished yet. We have a difficult situation on our hands in Gaza and it's the wrong time to conclude this document."

Reports of the agreement came after members of Hamas' military wing launched a cross-border raid on June 25 (CSMonitor), killing two Israeli soldiers and capturing one. The kidnapping created a huge political headache for Abbas and Haniyeh by raising the specter of Israeli retaliation and the risk of broader violence (BBC). The attack was widely believed to have been ordered by Khalid Meshal, the head of Hamas' political wing in exile in Damascus, and turned out as much of a burden as a bargaining chip for Haniyeh. Some commentators said it also reflected a growing split between internal and external Hamas leaders. "The military wing [of Hamas] has placed a bomb in [Haniyeh's] hands, almost certainly without having consulted him beforehand," write Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff in this Haaretz analysis.

Read the rest of this article on the cfr.org website.

Copyright 2006 by the Council on Foreign Relations. This material is republished on GlobalSecurity.org with specific permission from the cfr.org. Reprint and republication queries for this article should be directed to cfr.org.